At the close of the Civil War, ex-soldiers discharged from the various units of the Union Army, particularly The California Column, began to settle in New Mexico. Some of these men drifted into this area and began to farm small patches of ground and trap for their living. They thus created a need for postal services to market the furs they trapped. The first Post Office established in what is now Otero County was located o the South Fork of the Rio Tularosa now named Nogal Canyon. The official address of this Post Office was South Fork, New Mexico. At that time it was in Lincoln County. the nearest town with a post office, and the postal distribution point for South Fork was the settlement of Mesilla on the Rio Grande, one hundred and twenty miles to the west. Once a Month a mail carrier made the long, hard trip from Mesilla to South Fork with the mail. He traveled on horse back and if the mail was heavy he led a pack horse. There is no record of the name of the first mail carrier. A. Mr. Rockwood H. Blake was the first Postmaster.